Little Woodbury
Encyclopedia
Little Woodbury is the name of an important Iron Age
archaeological site
near Salisbury
in the English
county of Wiltshire
.
It was partially excavated between 1938 and 1939 by Gerhard Bersu
, a German archaeologist who introduced the revolutionary approaches he had developed in continental Europe before being driven to Britain by the Nazis
. He was commissioned by the Prehistoric Society to excavate the site in order to improve knowledge of early British settlement sites which were until then poorly understood.
A settlement had been identified at the site through aerial archaeology
by OGS Crawford almost 20 years previously. He had seen a circular enclosure as a cropmark
and it was identified for further excavation as a possible source of information on everyday prehistoric Britain.
Bersu dug a network of parallel trenches, one after the other across the site. Through this methodology, he was able to identify a large roundhouse
and several other domestic features. The posthole
s of the roundhouse enabled Bersu to argue that these structures were the common domestic building type of the Iron Age, prior to his work it was thought that people lived in holes in the ground. Through Bersu's identification of animal bone and cereal grains, he convinced other archaeologists to re-evaluate these large holes they found as storage pits.
When war broke out in 1939, work stopped and Bersu was interned
on the Isle of Man
. He never returned to the site and post-excavation work was never fully completed. The results from Little Woodbury however served to influence generations of archaeologists to take an interest in the day-to-day life of ancient peoples and the roundhouse has become a regular feature in interpreting prehistoric sites.
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
archaeological site
Archaeological site
An archaeological site is a place in which evidence of past activity is preserved , and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology and represents a part of the archaeological record.Beyond this, the definition and geographical extent of a 'site' can vary widely,...
near Salisbury
Salisbury
Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
.
It was partially excavated between 1938 and 1939 by Gerhard Bersu
Gerhard Bersu
Gerhard Bersu was a German archaeologist who excavated widely across Europe.He was born in Jauer in Silesia and as a teenager joined excavations near Potsdam. In successive years Bersu dug in several European countries and during the First World War he worked for the Office for the Protection of...
, a German archaeologist who introduced the revolutionary approaches he had developed in continental Europe before being driven to Britain by the Nazis
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
. He was commissioned by the Prehistoric Society to excavate the site in order to improve knowledge of early British settlement sites which were until then poorly understood.
A settlement had been identified at the site through aerial archaeology
Aerial archaeology
Aerial archaeology is the study of archaeological remains by examining them from altitude.The advantages of gaining a good aerial view of the ground had been long appreciated by archaeologists as a high viewpoint permits a better appreciation of fine details and their relationships within the wider...
by OGS Crawford almost 20 years previously. He had seen a circular enclosure as a cropmark
Cropmark
Cropmarks or Crop marks are a means through which sub-surface archaeological, natural and recent features may be visible from the air or a vantage point on higher ground or a temporary platform...
and it was identified for further excavation as a possible source of information on everyday prehistoric Britain.
Bersu dug a network of parallel trenches, one after the other across the site. Through this methodology, he was able to identify a large roundhouse
Roundhouse (dwelling)
The roundhouse is a type of house with a circular plan, originally built in western Europe before the Roman occupation using walls made either of stone or of wooden posts joined by wattle-and-daub panels and a conical thatched roof. Roundhouses ranged in size from less than 5m in diameter to over 15m...
and several other domestic features. The posthole
Posthole
In archaeology a posthole is a cut feature used to hold a surface timber or stone. They are usually much deeper than they are wide although truncation may not make this apparent....
s of the roundhouse enabled Bersu to argue that these structures were the common domestic building type of the Iron Age, prior to his work it was thought that people lived in holes in the ground. Through Bersu's identification of animal bone and cereal grains, he convinced other archaeologists to re-evaluate these large holes they found as storage pits.
When war broke out in 1939, work stopped and Bersu was interned
Internment
Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of 'interning'; confinement within the limits of a country or place." Most modern usage is about individuals, and there is a distinction...
on the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
. He never returned to the site and post-excavation work was never fully completed. The results from Little Woodbury however served to influence generations of archaeologists to take an interest in the day-to-day life of ancient peoples and the roundhouse has become a regular feature in interpreting prehistoric sites.